The "Distorted Priorities: Drug Offenders in State Prisons" study, conducted by the Sentencing Project, found that an estimated 251,000 drug offenders are in state prisons. Of that number, 58 percent are nonviolent offenders, and four out of five imprisoned are minorities.

"They represent a pool of appropriate candidates for diversion to treatment programs or some other type of community-based sanctions," the study's authors wrote. "The 'war on drugs' has been overly punitive and costly and has diverted attention and resources from potentially more constructive approaches."

For the study, the authors analyzed the 1997 U.S. Survey of Inmates in State Correctional Facilities. The report is issued every five years.

The Sentencing Project advocates for alternatives to incarceration for minor drug offenders.

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